Sex offender who fled to Seattle is near preschool

A sex offender with a “horrendous” criminal history in Canada has registered as a sex offender with the King County Sheriff’s Office, listing his general location as First Street and Pine Avenue in downtown Seattle, near Pike Place Market and one block from a preschool, according to records.

Washington state’s sex offender registry shows that Michael Sean Stanley, 48, registered as a transient and was listed as a “Level 2” offender.

Sheriff’s spokeswoman Sgt. Cindi West said Stanley has been classified at this time as a “Level 2” instead of “Level 3” offender because it is the minimum level for an offender registered as a transient.

She said Stanley’s offenses did not require him to register as a sex offender in Canada and local law enforcement is still waiting for documentation from Canada to determine whether he is legally required to register in the U.S. That will depend on whether his offenses are comparable to offenses in the U.S. requiring registration, West said.

Stanley’s classification will be determined by a state-approved scoring tool once it is determine whether he will be required to register in the U.S., West said.

West said that unless a person is being monitored by the state Department of Corrections or has probation restrictions on where they may live, a sex offender can live near a school or child-care facility.

Level 2 offenders have a moderate risk of re-offending, according to the sheriff’s website.

They generally have more than one victim and the abuse may be long-term. These offenders usually groom their victims and may use threats to commit their crimes.

These crimes may be predatory with the offender using a position of trust to commit their crimes. Typically these individuals do not appreciate the damage they have done to their victims, according to the website.

Stanley, who has a history of sexual offenses against women and children, caused school closures in Canada after he cut off his electronic-monitoring bracelet on Oct. 1. About a week later he crossed into the U.S. and made his way to Seattle.

Ilene Stark, executive director of the Pike Market Child Care and Preschool at Post Alley, which is within a block of Stanley’s registered address, said security at the market is aware of Stanley and his situation.

“It is upsetting and disturbing that he is wanted in Canada, but market security is really on top of it,” Stark said this morning.

She said last week security officers came to the child care program with a photo of Stanley. The photo was distributed to every staff member and every parent, she said.

“Everyone is aware and vigilant, and we’re all doing everything we can do to keep everyone safe,” Stark said.

Canadian officials have issued a public alert describing Stanley as an untreated, violent offender who posed a significant risk, but also said they would not seek his extradition back to Canada.

Although it is not clear whether Stanley must legally register as a sex offender, authorities in Seattle asked him to register, which he did.

Stanley, a U.S. citizen, has a criminal record in Washington, including in King County, but none of his Washington state convictions involves a sex crime, according to court records.

After his April 2011 release from prison in Canada, Stanley was being monitored by police behavioral specialists in Edmonton and required to wear an ankle bracelet that electronically monitored his whereabouts at all times, said Edmonton Police Services spokesman Chad Orydzuk.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said Friday that Stanley’s right to privacy prohibits the agency from discussing why he wasn’t turned over to Canadian authorities before being allowed into the U.S., or how it is that someone with his record of sex crimes was allowed to cross into the U.S. without further scrutiny.

About The Today File

The Today File is a general news blog featuring real-time coverage of Seattle and the Northwest. It is reported by the news staff of The Seattle Times and includes stories from The Associated Press and McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.